FMI Industry Survey - 2017 Talent Development in the Construction Industry

In today’s fast-changing and competitive business landscape, engineering and construction firms are vying to attract and retain the best people more than ever. Findings from this year’s talent development study paint a mixed picture of how construction firms are addressing people development.

In many cases, the topics of human resources (HR) and talent development are still being tackled in a very tactical, piecemeal manner, at best. Leading firms, however, recognize the need for a systematic and strategic approach and are investing in the necessary people and resources to set up long-term talent management programs.

Key findings from our study include:

• 89% of participants reported talent shortages in this year’s survey.
• 75% of participants have made changes to their training programs in the last two years, with mixed results.
• 43% of survey participants reported that their firms don’t prepare a formal annual training and development budget.
• Training and development programs aren’t very effective (score of 5.8 out of 10).
• Most firms struggle with performance management (score of 5 out of 10).
• Organizations with the highest employee retention have committed to rich professional development cultures and have effective performance management processes.
• 55% of survey respondents don’t have any formal processes in place for identifying and developing high-potential employees. 

Download the Survey

 

NLRB rules that workplace recording prohibitions are unlawful

Now that most, if not all, employees have smartphones with cameras in their pockets at all times, some employers have prohibited recording in the workplace. However, recent decisions by the National Labor Relations Board have found that “no recording” policies are illegal under the National Labor Relations Act (“the Act”).

Camden trainees making transition to jobs

CAMDEN - It is not, Bob Schiavinato said, a social welfare program.

"It's a social justice program," he said, sitting in a construction trailer outside what will soon become Camden Prep, a Renaissance school rising on Haddon Avenue in the city's Parkside neighborhood. "It's getting everyone to the same starting line."

Schiavinato was talking about the Camden Construction Careers Initiative, and about the Union Organization for Social Service (UOSS), and efforts to make sure city residents benefit from the many construction jobs at projects all over the city.

Budget: DCED to tighten job-creation rules, add apprenticeship grants

Companies that receive state funding for job creation would face stricter oversight under Gov. Tom Wolf's 2017-18 budget proposal, with revenue collected from companies that fall short helping fund a new apprenticeship program.

That effort is one of several that would affect manufacturers and other employers under Wolf's ongoing "Jobs that Pay" initiative, which also includes a proposal to hike the state's minimum wage from $7.25 to $12 an hour.

Are Philly's many hiring laws really driving employers away?

Donald Trump's triumph in the presidential election and voter support for Republican control of Congress and the General Assembly in Harrisburg seem to have encouraged Philadelphia business to speak out more against a City Hall that keeps setting new rules for employers. 

Philadelphia's building boom has been led by apartments, nonprofits, and some publicly subsidized corporate musical chairs. Big for-profit employers aren't flocking here or boosting wages. Center City can feel a bit like a bedroom suburb in the morning, as trains carry workers to jobs out of town as well as in.  

  

Employer Costs for Employee Compensation – June, 2016

Employer costs for employee compensation averaged $34.05 per hour worked in June 2016, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Wages and salaries averaged $23.35 per hour worked and accounted for 68.6 percent of these costs, while benefits averaged $10.70 and accounted for the remaining 31.4 percent. Total employer compensation costs for private industry workers averaged $32.29 per hour worked in June 2016. Total employer compensation costs for state and local government workers averaged $45.14 per hour worked in June 2016. 

FMI Releases the 2016 Construction Professional Compensation Survey

FMI Corporation, the leading provider of management consulting, investment banking and people development services to the engineering and construction industry, is pleased to announce the publication of its 2016 Construction Professional Compensation Survey. The survey includes data from 97 companies representing over 48,000 employees across 57 positions within U.S. engineering and construction firms.